TECHNOLOGY workers are still enjoying higher wages than people in most other industries, although their conditions have toughened a little over the past few years.Chief information officers earn an average of R47542, with some receiving a far higher R85000, according to the latest survey by online publishers ITWeb.
Information technology (IT) operations managers draw an average salary of R31000 a month, with some earning up to R60417. The highest reported salary, of R2m a year, was for a business intelligence consultant working on contract. At the other end of the scale, call-centre and help-desk operators earn an average of R9250 a month, with some receiving as little as R5896.
IT salaries have become more aligned with other industries as companies have spent less on technology and technicians are no longer in short supply. Bonuses, long-term incentives and annual pay rises were particularly hard hit, with only 12% of IT employees now receive a guaranteed annual bonus.
However, salaries are swinging upwards again for specialists whose skills are in short supply. The top end salaries reported by a few high fliers showed what the industry was prepared to pay for specialised skills, said ITWeb’s editorial director, Ranka Jovanovic.
The highest wages are going to experts in voice-over-internet protocol (VOIP) and internet protocol (IP) technologies, with companies keen to install VOIP systems to cut telecommunications costs. There were very few people with VOIP skills in SA, and they were being highly paid, said Jovanovic.
The average wage for a VOIP expert is R37000, while people with a lower level of network skills may struggle to find a job at all.
Software architects and enterprise resource planning consultants are also at the top of the payroll.
The complexion of the industry is changing slowly, with 82% of the replies coming from men and 80% from whites. The number of black staff has risen slightly from a year ago, to 13% of the responses.
The survey reported a declining interest in leaving the country, with only 4% of respondents making firm moves to emigrate. Of those, 30% said better career prospects were the main attraction, with 21% being driven away by crime and 20% driven by the lure of higher salaries.
One of the biggest problems facing IT companies is retaining staff. The survey found that 44% of people loved their jobs, 43% were neutral, while 13% were discontent. The unhappy staff were usually those taking home the lowest pay, although money was not the main contributor to satisfaction.
“The top reason for satisfaction is the challenge of the job and the responsibility,” Jovanovic said. The working atmosphere was the next cause of happiness or discontent, with remuneration ranking third.
Job hopping was a serious possibility, and companies that did not look after staff would be surprised at how difficult and expensive it was to replace them, said Susan Haiden, a manager at Insource ICT.
“Since 2002, the market has expanded. A client that was looking for one person a month is now looking for 10 a month. We can’t keep up with demand,” she said.
“There are so many positions available that IT people have a choice. A few years ago, candidates struggled to get one or two interviews, now they can get four or five job interviews and can wait until they get offered a better package.”
Technicians were not only looking for better salaries, but were also looking for a better balance between their work and private lives, she said.
Good news is that the pool of young black people entering the IT industry is increasing, as learnerships begin to produce more entry level candidates.
Young people are also seeing IT as a career with interesting and lucrative prospects, after a dip a few years ago when IT was no longer seen as a smart career move.
Article courtesy of Business Day
